Concern at untreated timber risk
Partially treated framing timber could be allowed into the building industry with the Government’s blessing, an industry boss says.
Untreated timber has been banned for framing since 2003 after the rules were relaxed in 1995, prior to the leaky building crisis.
Marty Verry, chief executive of leading mill Red Stag, said the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) was considering allowing ‘‘envelope treated’’ timber in a review of timber treatment standards.
Verry said the wood would be at greater risk of decay and called it a ‘‘dangerous development’’.
‘‘It threatens people’s major home asset, and it risks timber’s reputation as a reliable building material.’’
But Brian Stanley, chairman of the Wood Processors and Manufacturers Association, said the leaky home crisis was caused by poor workmanship and design, not untreated timber.
‘‘Any timber, including timber that’s treated with boron, will rot if it gets wet, so when you build a home, you build it so it doesn’t get wet.’’
MBIE confirmed a review of timber treatment standards was under way.
‘‘We can’t comment on what the standards committee is considering, but any proposed changes to the standard will go out for public consultation,’’ a spokesman said.
At present, timber that risks exposure to the wet must be treated with an anti-fungal treatment which permeates the sapwood. Envelope treated timber allows a thin layer of treatment around the outside.
But others in the timber industry suggested that the matter may really be a battle over market share and the emergence of new timber products.
Timber dominated the framing market until 2002, when leaky home concerns and the arrival of steel framing saw its market share slip 13 per cent, until about 2011.
Timber has since reclaimed 94 per cent of the framing market, but new engineered wood products such as laminated veneer lumber (LVL) are on the rise.
Verry estimates that the timber industry lost about $233 million in sales and said it could not afford to damage its reputation again.
‘‘It’s been a fragile recovery based on absolute assurance to the public that timber is treated throughout. We are not prepared to lose that trust again.’’
JNL Masterton’s mill manager, Paul Jordan, disagreed, saying the Government needed to keep pace with new wood innovations.
JNL’s J-Frame, an LVL framing product, is being investigated by the Commerce Commission for matters it would not specify but did include its labelling.
It has a hazard class of H1.2, meaning it is suitable for enclosed framing where it is not exposed to weather, but there is a risk of dampness such as burst pipes.
Jordan said he did not want to comment on the commission’s investigation, but was confident J-Frame was fit for purpose.
It was a composite of sapwood, which was treated, and hardwood, which was not susceptible to borer or fungi and did not have to be treated.